Security box for use with weapons and method of using the same

ABSTRACT

A storage box for articles that includes a base defining a chamber therein and a door that engages the base and is movable between an open position where the chamber can be accessed and a closed position where access is prevented. A locking mechanism prevents unauthorized opening of the door. A securement assembly is provided on an interior wall of the base to retain articles in predetermined positions. The assembly includes a first member that is fixedly secured to the interior wall and one or more second members that are each releasably engageable with the first member. The second members include various types of article engaging mechanisms so as to retain different types of articles and are able to be moved on the first member to create different article storing configurations within the box.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 61/348,780, filed May 27, 2010.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to apparatus and methods forstoring weapons. More particularly, the apparatus and methods relate tostoring weapons in a cabinet that preferably is mounted to a wall orother surface either vertically or horizontally. Specifically, theapparatus and methods of the present invention involve a storage cabinetwith a rail assembly for mounting a variety of articles includingrifles, handguns, shotguns, knives and other weapons and accessoriestherefore such as ammunition.

2. Background Information

There is a recent trend towards increased gun ownership for homeprotection and an increase in the number of concealed carry weaponpermits that are issued. There are new initiatives and laws, for examplein California, which suggest or require for the secure storage of gunsfor safety reasons such as preventing children from accessing them.Often, new gun owners are unprepared for the responsibility of securelystoring guns in a way that makes accessing them easy when they areneeded.

Existing gun storage cabinets are often large heavy safes, tall metalboxes that stand on the floor with one or fewer shelves in which riflesor shotguns rest on their stocks, or may include one more small boxesintended for one or two handguns. Safes are expensive, difficult toaccess, take up considerable space, and are easy to identify ascontaining valuables to a potential thief. It is also relativelydifficult to neatly place articles such as weapons inside safes.

The typical gun storage cabinet is optimized for the rapid presentationand rapid deployment of weapons to quickly respond to a situation. Manyare designed for and function primarily as storage devices and are evenrated and advertised in terms of the number of rifles they can hold.Boxes that are designed for handguns are often too small and notconfigured to hold common defense articles such as pepper spray, knivesand flashlights. Wall mounted gun storage cabinets often require cuttinga hole in the wall and those capable of holding rifles or shotguns needto be mounted vertically. Therefore, improved weapons storage methodsand devices are desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a storage box for articles and a methodof using the same. The storage box includes a base defining a chambertherein and a door that engages the base and is movable between an openposition where the chamber can be accessed and a closed position whereaccess is prevented. A locking mechanism prevents unauthorized openingof the door. A securement assembly is provided on an interior wall ofthe base to retain articles in predetermined positions. The assemblyincludes a first member that is fixedly secured to the interior wall andone or more second members that are each releasably engageable with thefirst member. The second members include various types of articleengaging mechanisms so as to retain different types of articles and areable to be moved on the first member to create different article storingconfigurations within the box.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

One or more preferred embodiments that illustrate the best mode(s) areset forth in the drawings and in the following description. The appendedclaims particularly and distinctly point out and set forth theinvention.

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of the specification, illustrate various exemplary methods andother embodiments of various aspects of the present invention. It willbe appreciated that the illustrated element boundaries (e.g., boxes,groups of boxes, or other shapes) in the figures represent one exampleof the boundaries. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate thatin some examples one element is designed as multiple elements or thatmultiple elements is designed as one element. In some examples, anelement shown as an internal component of another element is implementedas an external component and vice versa. Furthermore, elements may notbe drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective front view of a storage box for weaponsin accordance with the present invention shown mounted on a wall and ina closed position.

FIG. 2 illustrates a left side view of the storage box shown mounted onthe wall and in an open position.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front interior view of the storage box takenthrough line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 illustrates a front view of the door of the storage box when inan open position and taken through line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 illustrates a bottom view of the storage box lid taken throughline 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 illustrates a rear view of the storage box taken through line 6-6of FIG. 5 showing the locking mechanism in an unlocked position;

FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of a magnet support that is usedin the storage box to magnetically support articles therein;

FIG. 8 illustrates an exploded perspective view of the magnet support ofFIG. 7;

FIG. 9 illustrates a rear view of a clip used to support articles in thestorage box;

FIG. 10 illustrates a side view of the clip of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 illustrates a perspective view of a handgun support used tosupport a portion of a handgun in the storage box;

FIG. 12 illustrates a perspective view of a bracket support used tosupport articles in the storage box;

FIG. 13 illustrates a perspective view of a tension support used tosupport elongated articles in the storage box;

FIG. 14 illustrates a perspective view of a clamp style clip supportused to support articles in the storage box;

FIG. 15 illustrates a perspective view of a J-hook support used tosupport rifles and shotguns or other articles in the storage box;

FIG. 16 illustrates a perspective view of a shelf support used tosupport articles in the storage box;

FIG. 17 illustrates a perspective view of a stopper clip used to supportarticles in the storage box;

FIG. 18 illustrates an exploded perspective view of the stopper clip ofFIG. 17;

FIG. 19 illustrates a side view of the clip of FIG. 10 as it is beingattached to a rail in the interior of the storage box;

FIG. 20 illustrates a side view of the clip attached to the rail;

FIG. 21 illustrates a side view of the stopper clip of FIG. 17 before itis tightened to the rail in the interior of the storage box;

FIG. 22 illustrates a side view of the stopper clip of FIG. 21 after itis tightened to the rail;

FIG. 23 illustrates an interior front view of the storage box showing anumber of weapons and other articles engaged with a variety of differentclips and stored within the storage box;

FIG. 24 illustrates a left side view of the storage box after the dooris moved to the closed position;

FIG. 25 illustrates a front view of the storage box showing the doorhandle being moved to the locked position;

FIG. 26 illustrates the rear view of the door of the storage box showingthe locking mechanism moved to the locked position;

FIG. 27 illustrates an interior front view of the storage box showing arifle engaged with a plurality of clips and being stored within thestorage box;

FIG. 28 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the inventionshowing a storage box having two doors engaged with the base;

FIG. 29 illustrates an interior front view of a third embodiment of theinvention and shows a storage box that includes a lip in the base thatis useful for storing articles such as ammunition clips or projectiles;

FIG. 30 illustrates a cross-section of the third embodiment of theinvention absent the storage clips and weapons and illustrating the lipin the base; and

FIG. 31 is a flow chart showing an exemplary method of storing weaponsand other articles in the storage box of the present invention.

Similar numbers refer to similar parts throughout the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates a storage box in accordance with the presentinvention, generally indicated at 1. Storage box 1 is shown horizontallymounted on a wall 2 that includes a drywall layer 3 secured to studs 4.Screws (not shown) pass through a portion of storage box 1 into wallstuds 4. Storage box 1 can alternatively be mounted vertically onto wall2 or is mounted in any other desired configuration.

Storage box 1 preferably is generally rectangular in shape and includesa base 5 and a door 15. Base 5 and door 15 preferably are manufacturedout of a metal of sufficient thickness and strength to protect articlesstored inside from thieves or from other unwanted access. Base 5includes a back wall 6, a top wall 7, a bottom wall 8, a right side wall9 and a left side wall 10. The top, bottom, right side and left sidewalls 7, 8, 9, 10 form a peripheral wall that extends outwardly awayfrom back wall 6 and generally at right angles thereto. The back wall 6and peripheral wall define and bound an interior chamber 11 within whicharticles are able to be stored. (It should be understood that the terms“back”, “front”, “top”, “bottom” and “side” are used herein simply todescribe the orientation of the storage box 1 as specificallyillustrated in the attached figures. The use of these terms shouldn't beinterpreted as requiring that the storage box be mounted on a wall inthis particular configuration only.)

Door 15 is engaged with base 5 to close off access to chamber 11. Door15 includes a front door wall 16, a top door wall 17, a bottom door wall18, a right side door wall 19 and a left side door wall 20. Top doorwall 17, bottom door wall 18, right side door wall 19, and left sidedoor wall 20 form a perimeter wall that extends outwardly away fromfront door wall 16 and generally at right angles thereto. Front doorwall 16 and the perimeter wall bound and define a secondary chamber 11 a(FIG. 2) that together with chamber 11 is able to hold the articles tobe stored in storage box 1. As shown in FIG. 2, a top corner 24 of door15 is gently curved where top door wall 17 meets front door wall 16.Similarly, a bottom corner 25 of door 15 is gently curved where bottom18 door wall 17 meets front door wall 16. This curvature of corners 24,25 reduces the possibility that a user could hurt himself or herself bycontacting the corners of storage box 1.

Door 15 is attached to base 5 in such a manner that door 15 is able tobe moved between an open position and a closed position. Preferably,door 15 is pivotally attached to base 5 by way of one or more hinges 22.Door 15 is moved from the open position shown in FIG. 2 to the closedposition (FIG. 24) by rotating the door in the direction of arrow G asshown in FIG. 24. Door 15 is moved from the closed position to the openposition by rotating it in the opposite direction to arrow G. When door15 is in the closed position, right side door wall 19 at least partiallyoverlaps right side wall 9 of base 5, and left side door wall 20 atleast partially overlaps right side wall 9 of base 5. Furthermore,bottom door wall 18 at least partially overlaps bottom wall 8 of baseand preferably overlaps the entire bottom wall 8. As shown in FIG. 1,the overlap is smallest proximate the top wall 7 and top door wall 17,and is greatest proximate the bottom wall 8 and bottom door wall 18.Additionally, bottom door wall 18 completely overlaps bottom wall 8 ofbase 5. These overlapped regions increase the security of box 1 in thatthey substantially prevent a would-be thief from inserting an implementbetween base 5 and door 15 to rotate door 15 about hinge 22 and into anopen position and to thereby access the interior of storage box 1. Theoverlapped positions also enhance the security of box 1 by preventing awould-be-thief from inserting a implement into the hinged area of thelocked security box 1 in order to try and force the top portion of door15, i.e., the region around top wall 17, to rotate in the direction ofarrow G (FIG. 24) so that they can gain access to chamber 11 from thetop end of the box 1. This type of rotational motion is preventedbecause the overlapped portion of the bottom wall 18 of door 15 isdisposed in abutting contact with the wall 2 upon which box 1 is mountedand this contact prevents movement of bottom wall 18 in the direction ofarrow G.

A pneumatic piston 27 extends between base 5 and door 15 as shown inFIG. 2. Pneumatic piston 27 is attached to door 15 by mounting a doormounting bracket 28 to door 15 with one or more bolts 33 or anotherfastening device and connecting pneumatic piston 27 to door mountingbracket 28. Similarly, pneumatic piston 27 is attached to base 5 by waysecuring a mounting bracket 29 to base 5 with one or more bolts 33 oranother fastening device and connecting pneumatic piston 27 to mountingbracket 29. Pneumatic piston 27 also aids in supporting door 5 in theopen position and/or reduce the amount of force needed to open door 15.It will be understood that pneumatic piston 27 may be omitted fromstorage box 1.

Storage box 1 is provided with a locking mechanism to lock door 15 tobase 5 when box 1 is in the closed position. The locking mechanismincludes a handle 30 and a locking assembly 31. Handle 30 is mounted ona mounting plate 30 a (FIG. 4) disposed on an exterior surface of bottomdoor wall 18. Handle 30 is provided with a keyhole 32 configured toreceive a key (not shown) therein. Locking assembly 31 is provided on aninterior surface of bottom door wall 18. Locking assembly 31 includes alock mechanism 31 a configured to be activated by the key. A shaft 35extends outwardly from lock mechanism 31 a and is generally disposed atright angles to the interior surface of bottom door wall 18. A guide 40is secured to the interior surface of bottom door wall 18 in such amanner that a channel 40 a (FIG. 5) is defined between guide 40 and theinterior surface. Locking assembly 31 further includes a twist plate 34which connects to shaft 35 as shown in FIGS. 5-6. Shaft 35 extendsthrough an aperture (not shown) in guide 40. Twist plate 34 is securedto shaft 35 in such a manner that when shaft 35 rotates, twist plate 34rotates in unison therewith. Two arms 36 are pivotally attached to twistplate 34 and extend outwardly from opposing ends of twist plate 34 andextend in opposite directions to each other. Arms extend throughopenings 37 in guide 40 and are pivotally attached to locking bars 38.Locking bars 38 are configured for reciprocal travel through channel 40a between guide 40 and the interior surface of bottom door wall 18.Fasteners 38 a (FIG. 6) secure guide 40 to bottom door wall 15 and theshafts of each fastener 38 a extends through a slot 38 b in each lockingbar 38.

Locking assembly 31 further includes a center locking arm 39 that isattached to shaft 35 and is disposed at an angle relative to twist plate34. Locking arm 39 is secured to shaft 35 in such a manner that whenshaft 35 rotates, locking arm 39 rotates in unison therewith. FIGS. 4, 5and 6 show the locking mechanism in the unlocked position. When in thisposition, a portion of handle 30 extends outwardly for a distance beyondfront door wall 16. In order to lock door 15 to base 5, the lockingmechanism has to be moved from the unlocked position (FIG. 6) to thelocked position (FIG. 26) as will be described hereinafter.

Storage box 1 is provided with a securement assembly to retain a varietyof different articles within set locations within chamber 11. Thesecurement assembly utilized in storage box 1 comprises one or morerails 50 and one or more securement components 60 that are selectivelyengageable with rails 50. As shown in FIG. 3, at least one rail 50 isattached to back wall 6 by welding or by some other type of fasteningmechanism, such as fasteners 52.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 19 and 20, rail 50 is an elongate member having afront surface 50 a, a back surface 50 b, a top edge 50 c, a bottom edge50 d and left and right sides 50 e, 50 f (FIG. 3). The elongate memberhas a length as measured between left and right sides 50 e, 50 f, and awidth that is measured between the top edge 50 c and the bottom edge 50d. The elongate member further includes a longitudinal axis that extendsbetween left and right sides 50 e, 50 f thereof. Back surface 50 b isdisposed in abutting contact with an interior surface of one of thewalls that make up the base 5. As illustrated, back surface 50 b isplaced in abutting contact with the interior surface of back wall 6 ofbase 5. It should be understood, however, that the rail 50 couldalternatively be secured to the interior surface of the top wall, bottomwall, left side wall or right side wall of the base 5 if the boxconfiguration was suitable for this purpose. Rail 50 further includes afirst flange 63 and a second flange 64. Each of the first and secondflanges 63, 64 preferably is comprised of first and second legsrepresented respectively by the reference characters 63 a, 63 b and 64a, 64 b. The first legs 63 a, 64 a of first and second flanges 63, 64extend outwardly from front surface 50 a of rail and at an anglerelative thereto. Preferably that angle is ninety degrees but otherangular configurations are considered to fall within the scope of thepresent invention. The second legs 63 b, 64 b extend outwardly from theends of the first legs 63 a, 64 a and at an angle relative thereto.Again, preferably that angle is ninety degrees but other angularconfigurations are possible and are considered to fall within the scopeof the present invention. Preferably, the second legs 63 b, 64 b extendin opposite directions away from each other but they could alternativelyextend in opposite directions toward each other. It will be understoodthat rail 50 is preferably permanently attached to an interior wall ofthe storage box 1 either by welding, an adhesive or by a plurality offasteners.

Securement components 60 each comprise a rail clip 51 that is configuredto engage rail 50 and an article engaging member that is secured to railclip 51 and is configured to engage a specific article to be storedwithin storage box 1.

Rail clip 51 is illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 and includes a body 54having a front side 130 and a back side 131. Back side 131 defines arail-receiving space 132 therein. Body 54 defines a cavity 54 a thereinthat extends from front side 130 to back side 131. A spring assembly 55is seated within cavity 54 a and includes one or more teeth 57 thatconstitute a lower end of receiving space 132. Springs 53 positionedwithin cavity 54 a bias teeth 57 on spring assembly 55 toward a pair oftabs 56 that extend downwardly on back side 131 of body and toward teeth57. Tabs 56 define an upper end of receiving space. Rail clip 51 definesa plurality of holes 58, 59 therein that extend from front side 130through to back side 131 of body 54. Hole 58 preferably is threaded toreceive threaded fasteners therethrough. Holes 59 are not necessarilythreaded. Rail clip is configured to be secured to rail 50 as will bedescribed later herein.

As indicated previously, storage box 1 includes a variety of securementcomponents 60 that are each selectively positionable within the interiorof box 1 and are engageable with one of rails 50. Each securementcomponent comprises the rail clip 51 described above and one of avariety of article engaging members. Each securement component 60 isthus designed to engage a particular type of article to be stored withinstorage box 1 and to hold that article in a set location within theinterior of the box. These securement components 60 are selectivelymovable within the interior of storage box 1 to allow for differentstorage configurations of different articles. A user is therefore ableto customize the interior storage arrangement to suit the type and sizeof the articles that he or she wishes to retain within storage box 1.For example, storage box 1 may be configured to securely store severalknives or several handguns or combinations of the same. Storage box 1may alternatively be configured to store smaller articles related to themain weapon, such as ammunition, or to store shotguns or rifles or anyother such weaponry. Examples of differently configured storagearrangements will be described later herein.

A wide variety of article engaging members are each engaged with a railclip 51 to create a variety of support devices 60 that are then engagedon rails 50. The support device 60 selected is chosen according to thetype of weapon that is to be stored and the nature of how best tosupport that weapon on the rail 50. FIGS. 7-8 show a first one of suchsupport devices 60. In this instance, the support device is a magneticsupport 70. Magnetic support 70 comprises a circular magnet 67 disposedin a housing 68 which is then engaged with rail clip 51. The magnet 67and housing 68 are attached to rail clip 51 using a bolt 69 that isinserted through aligned holes (unnumbered) in magnet 67 and housing 68and into hole 58 of rail clip as shown in FIG. 8. It will be understoodthat the shape of the magnet 67 and housing 68 used to create themagnetic support 70 is immaterial.

FIG. 11 illustrates a second style of securement component 60, in thisinstance, a handgun support 75. In order to manufacture handgun support75 a metal bar 72 is bent into a shape as shown in this figure and isthen welded or otherwise attached to a flat metal plate 73. Metal bar 72is bent so that it forms a receiving space 129 with supports above andbelow that space. Plate 73 is attached to rail clip 51 using one or morescrews 74 that are inserted into holes 58, 59 of rail clip 51.

FIG. 12 illustrates another version of a securement component 60 that isattachable to rail 50. In this instance, the securement component 60 isa bracket support 80. Bracket support is made from an angle bracket 78which is welded or otherwise attached to a base plate 79. Base plate 79is secured to rail clip 51 by way of fasteners (not shown) that areinserted into the holes 58, 59 in the rail clip 51. A variety of weaponsor other articles may be engaged in the receiving space 78 a betweenbracket 78 and plate 79 or the weapon or article may simply be hung onthe bracket support 80 or attached thereto by fasteners that passthrough holes 78 b.

FIG. 13 illustrates yet another example of a securement component 60that may be attached to rail 50. In particular, this securementcomponent 60 is a tension support 84 that is formed by attaching one ormore tension clips 82 to a rail clip 51 with fasteners 83 that areinserted through a hole in the tension clip and into holes 58 or 59 inrail clip 51.

FIG. 14 illustrates yet another form of securement component 60 that maybe engaged with rail 50. In this instance, the securement component 60is a clamp support 90. Clamp support 90 is formed by attaching a clampbracket 92, a base 91 and a rail clip 51 together with bolts 93. Clampsupport 90 is used to support the type of articles within storage box 1that are best clamped or clipped into place.

FIG. 15 illustrates yet another securement component 60 in the form of aJ-hook support 95. J-hook support 95 is formed by attaching a mountingbracket 96 to rail clip 51 with bolts 97. Mounting bracket 96 defines anelongated opening 99 into which a J-shaped bar 100 is slid. Bar 100 isslid into mounting bracket 96 so that a hole in the J-shaped bar 100aligns with one of several holes 101 in mounting bracket 96. When bar100 is adjusted to the desired height, a locking pin 104 is insertedthrough the aligned holes to lock bar 100 at the desired positionrelative to rail clip 51. Obviously, this position is adjusted bysliding bar 100 within opening 99 after removing locking pin 104 andthen inserting pin 104 into a new set of aligned holes when bar 100 isat the desired position relative to rail clip 51. Preferably, bar 100 isat least partially covered with rubber 103 or another soft material sothat it does not scratch an article to be stored on hook support 95.

FIG. 16 illustrates yet another example of a securement component 60that is attachable to rail 50 by way of rail clip 51. In this instance,the securement component 60 is a shelf support 110 that is clipped torail 50 to support ammunition or other small items. Shelf support 110 isformed with a bottom 111, a back side 112, a front side 113, a left side114 and a right side 115 that form a receiving area 127. Articles areable to be placed in the receiving area 127 and onto the bottom 111 thatforms a shelf for supporting those articles. FIG. 16 shows that theshelf support is secured to two spaced apart rail clips 51 usingfasteners 116. It will be understood that a single rail clip 51 may beused to secure smaller shelf supports to rail 50 and two or more railclips 51 may be used to secure larger shelf supports to rail 50. It willalso be understood that the shelf support may also be provided with alid-type structure so as to form a closable box into which articles maybe inserted.

FIGS. 17-18, 21, and 22 illustrate a stopper clip 117 that ispositionable at either end of rail 50 so that other rail clips 51 cannotbe slid off rail 50. Stopper clip 117 includes a base 118 and atightening bracket 119. Base 118 is C-shaped and includes tabs 120 atboth upper and lower ends of a receiving space 107. Receiving space 107is sized so that rail 50 is able to be received therein. Two slotopenings 121 in base 118 allow the smaller C-shaped tightening bracket119 to slide into base 118 so that legs 105 of bracket 119 extendthrough slots openings 121. When stopper base 118 and tightening bracket119 are secured together, the ends 122 of legs 105 of bracket 119 pressagainst rail 50, as shown in FIG. 22. This occurs when a bolt 123 isinserted through aligned holes 106 a, 106 b. Bolt 123 is screwed into anut 124 disposed on the interior of base 118 or it is simply threadedinto threads in hole 106 b.

Rail clip 51 is attached to rail 50 in the manner shown in FIGS. 19-20and described hereinafter. First, the teeth 57 on rail clip 51 areinserted under a first flange 63 of rail 50. Next, rail clip 51 is movedupwardly in the direction of arrow Q (FIG. 19). This upwardly movementcauses springs 53 on rail clip 51 to become compressed and causes teeth57 and member 55 to move downwardly away from tabs 56, as indicated byarrow R. This movement increases the distance between teeth 57 and tabs56 to a degree sufficient to enable tabs 56 to clear second flange 64.The upper end of rail clip 41 is then rotated in the direction of arrowS (FIG. 20) and rail clip 51 is pressed inwardly toward rail 50 so thatthe distance between back side 131 and back wall 6 is reduced. Once tabs56 have moved behind second flange 64, the pressure on rail clip 51 isreleased and springs 53 return to their original position, moving teeth57 upwardly toward tabs 56. Thus, first flange 63 and second flange 64are captured by teeth 57 and tabs 56, and rail clip 51 is securelyengaged, with rail 50. It should be understood that if it is desired toremove rail clip 51 from rail, then rail clip is moved upwardly in thedirection of arrow Q (FIG. 19) so that spring assembly is compressedonce again and then the upper end of rail clip 51 is rotated in theopposite direction to arrow S (FIG. 20) to disengage tabs 56 from secondflange 64.

Rail clips 51 are positioned at any desired location along the length ofrail 50. Additionally, if more than one rail 50 is provided withinstorage box 1, any desired number of rail clips 51 can be located atdesired positions on those multiple rails 50. It will be understood thateach rail clip 51 may slide along rail 50 so that the clip can bepositioned at any desired location along the rail's length. It will beunderstood that the securement components 60 that include rail clips 51are installed and positioned on rails 50 in the same manner as railclips 51, and are removed in the same manner as well.

FIG. 23 shows an example of how storage box 1 may be used to secure andstore a variety of weaponry articles therein. Storage box 1 includes twospaced apart rails 50 onto which a plurality of securement components 60are engaged after door 15 has been rotated to an open position.Securement components 60 to be utilized inside storage box 1 asillustrated include a handgun support 75, a tension support 84 and amagnetic support 70. (These supports are illustrated in FIG. 3 withoutthe articles engaged therewith.) The user is able to engage each of thesupports 75, 85 and 70 on either of the top or bottom rails 50 and isthen able to slide the supports laterally along the selected rail 50 toposition them in the desired locations. Alternatively, the user cansimply disengage the rail clips 51 of any of the supports in the mannerdescribed previously and then move the support to a new desired locationand reengage the rail clip 51 in the manner described previously. InFIGS. 3 and 23 all three of the supports 75, 85 and 70 have been engagedon the lower rail 50 and have then been spaced substantiallyequidistantly along rail 50. A handgun 76 is retained within thereceiving space 129 of handgun support 75. A flashlight 88 is retainedin the tension clips of tension support 84 and a knife 71 ismagnetically retained on the magnet 67 of magnetic support 70.

Once all of the desired articles are retained by the appropriatesecurement component 60, door 15 is rotated in the direction of arrow Gto close off access to the interior chamber 11. Once the door 15 isfully closed, the locking mechanism is engaged to lock door 15 to base5. In order to engage the locking mechanism, handle 30 is rotated in thedirection of arrow A (FIGS. 25 & 26). The locking mechanism may bedesigned so that the key (not shown) has to be inserted into keyhole 32in handle 30 before handle can be rotated in the direction of arrow A.The rotation of handle 30 into alignment with plate 30 a on bottom doorwall 18 also causes shaft 35 to be rotated in the direction of arrow A.This in turn causes twist plate 34 to be rotated in the direction ofarrow A from the position shown in phantom in FIG. 26 to the positionshown in solid lines in that figure. The rotational movement of twistplate 34 in turn pushes bars 38 in opposite directions from each other(as indicated by arrows C and D in FIG. 26) and outwardly away fromtwist plate 34. The motion also causes locking arm 39 to be rotated inthe direction of arrow A from the position shown in phantom in FIG. 26to the position shown in solid lines in the same figure. This motioncauses locking arm 39 to slide into overlapping engagement with a locktab 43 (FIG. 24) as the free ends of locking bars 38 overlap lockflanges 44 (FIG. 26) which extend inward from the interior surface ofdoor 15 and toward chamber 11. At this point, locking mechanism is in alocked position and the door 15 is prevented from being opened by theengagement of lock tab 43 with locking arm 38 and the engagement oflocking bars 38 and lock flanges 44.

In order to move the locking mechanism from a locked position (FIG. 26)to an unlocked position (FIG. 6) the key (not shown) has to be insertedinto keyhole 32 to disengage the lock member 31 a. Once the lock memberis disengaged, handle 30 may be rotated in the opposite direction toarrow A. The rotation of handle 30 causes shaft 35, twist plate 34 andlocking bar 39 to rotate in the opposite direction to arrow A. This inturn causes bars 38 to be drawn inwardly toward twist plate and out ofengagement with flanges 44. Additionally, locking bar 39 is rotated outof contact with tab 43. Door 15 may then be moved from the closed andunlocked position to the open position.

FIG. 27 shows a different version of the storage box in accordance withthe present invention and generally indicated at 200. Storage box 200 isof a sufficient length that is able to be used to store a rifle 102 andtherefore includes a longer cabinet base 205 and door 215 than thosecomponents of storage box 1. Storage box 200 is, again, provided withtwo vertically spaced apart rails 50. Two spaced-apart J-hook supports95 are secured to the top rail 50 and the butt and barrel of rifle 102are received within the receiving spaces 128 of the two supports 95. Asupport shelf 110 is also engaged with the top rail 50 and a pluralityof ammunition boxes 108 are illustrated as being stored on support shelf110. Storage box 200 will be closed an locked in substantially the samemanner as storage box 1.

FIG. 28 shows an alternative embodiment of the storage box 301 that issubstantially identical to the storage box 1 except that it is providedwith a second door 315 that is disposed adjacent the door 15. Althoughnot shown in this figure, it should be understood that each of doors 15,315 may be provided with their own locking mechanisms or the lockingmechanism described and illustrated in FIG. 5 may be used tosimultaneously lock both doors 15, 315. Doors 15 and 315 preferably areseparately openable and allow a user to access a portion of chamber 11that is immediately behind the respective door. In other applications,the storage box could be used for storing larger articles such asarmored vests and the doors could be secured to the base in such amanner that they open outwardly away from each other to gain access intothe interior to remove the larger articles. In yet other applications,the doors could open in such a manner that they may be used as a weaponcleaning station. Still further, the interior surfaces of the doors maybe provided with components that permit additional weapons oraccessories to be stored on the doors themselves. It will also beunderstood that more than two doors may be provided on the storage box.

Referring to FIGS. 29 and 30, there is illustrated a third embodiment ofthe storage box of the present invention, generally indicated at 401.Storage box 401 is substantially identical to storage box 1 except forthe addition of an L-shaped lip 408 provided on base 5. Lip 408 includesa first leg 408 a and a second leg 408 b. First leg 408 a extendsoutwardly from back wall 6 and substantially at right angles thereto.Second leg 408 b extends upwardly away from first leg 408 a andsubstantially at right angles thereto. Second leg 408 b is substantiallyparallel to back wall 6. As such, a space 408 c is defined between backwall 6 and second leg 408 b of lip 408. Lip 408 is divided into twoseparate sections that are separated from each other by a gap in whichlock tab 43 is situated. Accessories such as ammunition clips 409 orbullets 410 can be stored in space 408 c as shown in FIG. 29.

Additionally, although not illustrated herein, it should be understoodthat the interior chamber 11 of the storage box in accordance with thepresent invention may also be divided into a plurality of separateindividual chambers which are separated from each other by dividingwalls. Each of the plurality of these separate chambers may also beprovided with its own door and locking mechanism or the single door 15(215) and single locking mechanism may close of access to all of theseparate chambers at the same time.

An example of the method of using the storage box 1 in accordance withthe present invention is illustrated in the flow diagram shown in FIG.31. While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the method is shownand described using a series of diagrammatic blocks to signify the stepsof the method. It should be appreciated, however, that the method of useis not limited by the order of the blocks as shown, as some steps canoccur in a different order and/or concurrently with other steps fromthat shown and described. Moreover, less than all the illustrated stepsmay be utilized to implement an example method of use. Furthermore,additional steps may also form part of the method of use of this storagebox.

FIG. 31 illustrates a method 500 of storing articles in a storage box 1in accordance with the present invention. The method 500 includes thefirst step 502 of opening the door of the storage box. As discussedearlier, the storage box is opened by first unlocking a key assembly ina handle in the door of the storage box. Next, the handle is rotated tomove a pair locking bolts and a center locking arm way from tabs on thebase of the storage box. After the door is unlocked, it is rotated intoan open position where access to the interior chamber 11 is possible.

A second step 504 in the method of use of the storage box 1 is theattachment of a securement component to a rail in the interior ofstorage box.

A third step 506 in the method of use is the engagement of an article,such as a handgun with the securement component. As previouslydiscussed, different securement components such as bracket supports,magnetic supports, tensions supports and shelf supports are attached torail clips to store different types of weapons.

A fourth step 508 in the method of use is the closing of the storage boxto prevent access to the interior chamber and therefore to the articlesstored therein. A fifth step 510 in the method of use includes theengagement of the locking mechanism to prevent unauthorized opening ofthe door to the storage box.

Although not illustrated in the flow diagram, further possible steps inthe method include the steps of disengaging the locking mechanism beforethe step 502 of opening the door. Additional possible steps includepositioning of the securement components in appropriate locations toaccommodate various articles, and wherein the step of positioningincludes sliding the securement components along the rails. Stillfurther, the steps of the method may include positioning stops at eitherends of the rails to prevent the securement components from sliding offfrom the same and removing or adding securement components toaccommodate storage of additional or fewer articles therein.

It is contemplated that the device of the present invention be sold inone of two forms. In a first form, the storage box including the railsand locking mechanism will be sold as a unit. The securement components60 will be individually sold so that the buyer can select the type ofsecurement components they need to store certain articles of weaponryand associated products. In a second form, the storage box andsecurement components will be sold as a kit, i.e. the storage box withattached rails will be sold with a combination of various securementcomponents 60 such as two J-hook supports 95, two shelf supports 110,and two magnetic clips 70.

Additionally, it will be understood that while the rails 50 are shown asbeing mounted on the wall of the base 5 that is opposite the openingwhich is coverable by the door 15, the rail(s) could, instead, besecured to any desired region of the peripheral or bottom walls of thebase without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Furthermore, while it has been disclosed that the storage box 1 isdesigned to be mounted on a support structure such as a vertical,horizontal or angled wall surface, it should be understood that it isnot necessary that the storage box 1 be mounted to any surface in orderto function to retain articles in predetermined positions within theinterior chamber of the box and to prevent unauthorized access to thesame. Instead, the storage box may simply be placed on a flat surface,such as a shelf or table surface. In this latter instance, the storagebox may also be provided with a plurality of legs on the exteriorsurface of the back wall so that the back wall will be slightly elevatedoff the flat surface upon which the storage box rests.

In the foregoing description, certain terms have been used for brevity,clearness, and understanding. No unnecessary limitations are to beimplied therefrom beyond the requirement of the prior art because suchterms are used for descriptive purposes and are intended to be broadlyconstrued. Therefore, the invention is not limited to the specificdetails, the representative embodiments, and illustrative examples shownand described. Thus, this application is intended to embracealterations, modifications, and variations that fall within the scope ofthe appended claims.

Moreover, the description and illustration of the invention is anexample and the invention is not limited to the exact details shown ordescribed. References to “the preferred embodiment”, “an embodiment”,“one example”, “an example”, and so on, indicate that the embodiment(s)or example(s) so described may include a particular feature, structure,characteristic, property, element, or limitation, but that not everyembodiment or example necessarily includes that particular feature,structure, characteristic, property, element or limitation.

1. A storage box for one or more articles comprising: a base having aback wall and a peripheral wall extending outwardly from the back wall;a chamber defined and bounded by the back and peripheral walls; andwherein an opening to the chamber is provided adjacent an upper end ofthe peripheral wall; a door engageable with the base, said door beingmovable to an open position to permit access to the chamber through theopening and movable to a closed position to prevent access to thechamber; a locking mechanism for selectively locking the door and basetogether when the door is in the closed position; and a securementassembly provided on one of the back wall and peripheral wall of thebase; said securement assembly being adapted to retain the one or morearticles in predetermined positions within the chamber.
 2. The storagebox as defined in claim 1, wherein the securement assembly comprises: afirst member that is fixedly secured to the one of the back wall andperipheral wall of the base; and one or more second members that areeach releasably engageable with the first member, wherein each secondmember is adapted to engage a portion of one of the articles.
 3. Thestorage box as defined in claim 2, wherein the first member comprises arail that is fixedly secured to the one of the back wall and theperipheral wall of the base.
 4. The storage box as defined in claim 3,wherein each second member comprises: a rail clip configured to beselectively releasably engaged with the rail; and an article engagingmember that is secured to the rail clip; and wherein the articleengaging member is adapted to engage the portion of the one of thearticles.
 5. The storage box as defined in claim 4, wherein the railcomprises: an elongate member having a front surface, a back surface, atop edge, a bottom edge and left and right sides; said elongate memberfurther having a longitudinal axis that extends between the left andright sides thereof; and wherein the back surface is disposed inabutting contact with an interior surface of the one of the back walland the peripheral wall of the base; a first flange extends outwardlyfrom the front surface and at a first angle to the longitudinal axis;and a second flange extends outwardly from the front surface at a secondangle to the longitudinal axis, and wherein said first and secondflanges are spaced a distance apart from each other; and the rail clipis configured to releasably engage the first and second flanges.
 6. Thestorage box as defined in claim 4, wherein the rail clip comprises: abody having an interior surface and an exterior surface; a recessdefined in the interior surface of the body, said recess being at leastas wide as a width of the rail; a tab extending downwardly from theinterior surface of the body adjacent a top end of the recess; a toothextending upwardly from the interior surface of the body adjacent abottom end of the recess, a gap is defined between the tab and thetooth, wherein the gap is smaller than the width of the rail; and amovement mechanism is provided on the body and is operationally engagedwith one of the tooth and the tab, said movement mechanism beingmoveable between an engaged position where it temporarily increases thesize of the gap between the tooth and the tab to at least as wide as thewidth of the rail, and a disengaged position where the size of the gapbetween the tooth and the tab is less than the width of the rail.
 7. Thestorage box as defined in claim 6, wherein the rail is receivable in therecess of the body of the rail clip when the movement mechanism is inthe engaged position, and the rail is retained in the recess in the bodyby the tooth and the tab when the movement mechanism is released andreturns to its disengaged position.
 8. The storage box as defined inclaim 7, wherein the movement mechanism includes a spring memberprovided on the body, and wherein said spring member biases the one ofthe tooth and the tab into a position where the gap between the tab andthe tooth is smaller than the width of the rail; and wherein the springmember is compressible to increase the gap to at least as large as thewidth of the rail.
 9. The storage box as defined in claim 4, wherein therail clip is selectively slideable along the length of the rail.
 10. Thestorage box as defined in claim 4, wherein the article engaging membercomprises one of a magnet, a bracket, a tension clip, a clamp, aJ-shaped hook, a shelf, and a length of metal bent to define a receivingspace and a support for an article.
 11. The storage box defined in claim1, wherein the peripheral wall of the base comprises a top wall, abottom wall, a right side wall and a left side wall; and the doorincludes a front door wall, a top door wall, a bottom door wall, a rightside door wall and a left side door wall; and when the door is in theclosed position, the bottom door wall at least partially overlaps thebottom wall of the base, the right side door wall at least partiallyoverlaps the right side wall of the base, and the left side door wall atleast partially overlaps the left side wall.
 12. The storage box asdefined in claim 11, wherein the bottom door wall substantiallycompletely overlaps the bottom wall of the base, and the lockingmechanism locks the bottom door wall to the bottom wall.
 13. The storagebox as defined in claim 1, further comprising at least one additionaldoor that is positioned adjacent the door and is selectively openable topermit access to only a portion of the chamber; and closeable to preventaccess to the portion of the chamber.
 14. In combination: a storage boxfor one or more articles comprising: a base having a back wall and aperipheral wall extending outwardly from the back wall; a chamberdefined and bounded by the back and peripheral walls; and wherein anopening to the chamber is provided adjacent an upper end of theperipheral wall; a door engageable with the base, said door beingmovable to an open position to permit access to the chamber and movableto a closed position to prevent access to the chamber; a lockingmechanism for selectively locking the door and base together when thedoor is in the closed position; and a securement assembly adapted toretain the one or more articles within the chamber in a desiredconfiguration; and wherein the securement assembly comprises: a firstmember that is fixedly secured to one or both of the back wall andperipheral wall of the base; and a plurality of second members that areeach releasably engageable with the first member and adapted to engage aportion of one of the articles; and wherein each second member isselectively positionable on the first member in order to retain thearticles in the desired configuration.
 15. The combination as defined inclaim 14, wherein the first member is a rail and each second membercomprises: a rail clip configured to be selectively releasably engagedwith the rail; and an article engaging member that is secured to therail clip; and wherein the article engaging member is adapted to engagethe portion of the one of the articles.
 16. The combination as definedin claim 15, wherein the article engaging member comprises one of amagnet, a bracket, a tension clip, a clamp, a J-shaped hook, a shelf,and a length of metal bent to define a receiving space and a support foran article.
 17. A method of storing articles in a storage box comprisingthe steps of: opening a door of a storage box; attaching a first articleengaging member to a rail that is permanently mounted to an interiorwall of the storage box; engaging an article with the first articleengaging member to retain the article in a predetermined position withinthe storage box; closing the door of the storage box; and engaging alocking mechanism to prevent unauthorized access to the article.
 18. Themethod as defined in claim 17, further comprising the steps of:attaching a second article engaging member to the rail a spaced distancefrom the first article engaging member; engaging the article partiallyon the first article engaging member and partially on the second articleengaging member.
 19. The method as defined in claim 18, furthercomprising the steps of: attaching a second article engaging member tothe rail a spaced distance from the first article engaging member; andengaging a second article with the second article engaging member. 20.The method as defined in claim 19, further comprising the steps of:attaching one or more of a plurality of article engaging members to oneof the rail and a second rail that is permanently fixed to the interiorwalls of the storage box; sliding the first article engaging member andthe one or more of the plurality of article engaging members along therespective rail or second rail to desired positions; and engaging one ormore of a plurality of the articles on the one or more of the pluralityof article engaging members.
 21. The method as defined in claim 20,further comprising the step of: adjusting the position of the firstarticle engaging member or the one or more of the plurality of articleengaging members on the respective rail or second rail to ensure thatthe article and the one or more of the plurality of articles are storedwithin the storage box in a desired configuration.